Jump to content
IGNORED

Christ. vs Boards of Canada


Guest twiddler

Recommended Posts

Guest twiddler

So what do you think? If you're familiar with Christ.'s music, how do you rate it compared to BoC's? In my view, he's really, really good. I don't know how much he was involved in the band - was he really one third for several years, or just one of the many associates. I think his influence is present on Twoism a lot - it's a very unusual record for them, as if he was partially the reason to leave the record minimal, without happy swirly synths and children voices. Quite similar to an early track by Christ. - Moxley Moy - kind of mood.

 

On Campfire, Slow This Bird Down uses darker synths, like those on Christ.'s Metamorphic Reproduction Miracle. Personally, I prefer the latter to Campfire - it's a very detailed and dark record.

 

And last, if you've read carefully the Matador bio, you know about the movie with the electrical pylons(my guess is that's where the 'annoying' Music for Pylons track belongs). Christ. has an EP called Pylonesque with a beautiful image of such pylons on the cover.(the EP is gorgeous as well)

 

It's obvious Christ. and the boards were close, just wondering why they parted ways. I can only imagine how much he could contribute to their music.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 97
  • Created
  • Last Reply
Guest SyZyGy

good question, I really like both equally. I was listening to " A Dream of the Endless " when I ran across this thread, tis one of my favorite tracks.

 

While similiar in sound both have their own unique sound, anyone have some earlier Boc with Christ? never heard any.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest doctorvee

I've got the impression that Christ. was only involved in BOC really tangentially and the link was just emphasised, like a white lie on a CV, to create hype and freeride on the success of BOC. Nobody gave a shit about Christ. or Benbecula until this BOC stuff came out. And BOC erased all mention of him on the reissue of Twoism.

 

I could be totally wrong though, that's just my impression.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest twiddler
I've got the impression that Christ. was only involved in BOC really tangentially and the link was just emphasised, like a white lie on a CV, to create hype and freeride on the success of BOC. Nobody gave a shit about Christ. or Benbecula until this BOC stuff came out. And BOC erased all mention of him on the reissue of Twoism.

 

I could be totally wrong though, that's just my impression.

 

I also think it's been emphasised to get some attention to Christ. but actually this is not a bad thing - his music IS similar to BoC in many ways, and yet he doesn't seem to copy their style - probably the only BoC-like artist that stands maybe even better, doing his own thing.

 

However, after reading the Matador bio with the Pylons thing I am pretty much convinced that he was an active member of the band - in an interview he mentions being involved in a band after high-school where they also made movies - without giving names or anything 'i was in boc'-like.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest chromakey_dreamcoat

Chris is not supposed to be known by the public because the band members are not mentioned on Twoism's jewelcase.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest endangered betche
So what do you think? If you're familiar with Christ.'s music, how do you rate it compared to BoC's? In my view, he's really, really good. I don't know how much he was involved in the band - was he really one third for several years, or just one of the many associates. I think his influence is present on Twoism a lot - it's a very unusual record for them, as if he was partially the reason to leave the record minimal, without happy swirly synths and children voices. Quite similar to an early track by Christ. - Moxley Moy - kind of mood.
I think Christ.'s stuff is simpler and darker. Pylonesque has one or two 'happy moments', but Metamorphic Reproduction Miracle is brooding and gloomy as heck. Most of his beats aren't 'aged' like BOC's are, but are pretty decent anyways (although I remember an argument here about the 'dirty' production of MRM [which was apparently produced by Bola?]).

 

Seeing & Doing really is not even worth talking about; here's hoping Blue Shift Emissions is better.

 

If BOC is a 9/10, Christ. is about a 6.5/10. But he has his moments.

 

Quite similar to an early track by Christ. - Moxley Moy - kind of mood.

 

Moxley Moy is so simple and gives you goosebumps anyways. I almost wish Christ. had continued more in this vein; but then I guess he would sound like Freescha.

 

Interesting topic.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think Christ. has really fallen off since the debut EP on Benbecula. That EP was perfect and certainly rivaled BOC in quality on a couple of the tracks. The LP was definitely a step down, though a couple songs were really beautiful (the broken mix of Pylonesque and Sunart, in particular). Seeing & Doing was pretty forgettable. The "Vernor Vinge" track he just released is really good, but the rest of the 12" was forgettable. "Vernor Vinge" is supposed to be the only track off the new album though, so maybe Blue Shift Emissions will blow me away like Pylonesque did.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If BOC is a 9/10, Christ. is about a 6.5/10. But he has his moments.

 

 

 

basically, yeah. i mean, i still own pylonesque, mrm, and vernor vinge on vinyl ... but, yeah, the past relation to BoC means almost nothing

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest ▓▓▓
I think Christ.'s stuff is simpler and darker. Pylonesque has one or two 'happy moments', but Metamorphic Reproduction Miracle is brooding and gloomy as heck. Most of his beats aren't 'aged' like BOC's are, but are pretty decent anyways (although I remember an argument here about the 'dirty' production of MRM [which was apparently produced by Bola?]).

Bola did not produce, he only mastered it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest doctorvee

I agree with the consesnsus here. Pylonesque was really good; MMR was just okay. Seeing and Doing was crap.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest twiddler

I was thinking, is it possible that one of the reasons for the decision to release something like only a selection of the early pre-twoism albums could be that Chris was a member at the time? Just a speculation, of course, but if he really was involved, then he should get something for his part, right?

 

I've seen his name on one of the scans of Old Tunes - he wasn't listed a member, just 'thanks to' along with other people. But back in 1996, according to the bio, he had quit already, so maybe this makes sense, not to be given credit for songs.

 

And, yeah, it seems that he rushed things a bit with MRM, but it's not a lazy effort at all. I hope his next full length will be better.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest doctorvee
I was thinking, is it possible that one of the reasons for the decision to release something like only a selection of the early pre-twoism albums could be that Chris was a member at the time? Just a speculation, of course, but if he really was involved, then he should get something for his part, right?

 

I've seen his name on one of the scans of Old Tunes - he wasn't listed a member, just 'thanks to' along with other people. But back in 1996, according to the bio, he had quit already, so maybe this makes sense, not to be given credit for songs.

Surely if Chris H's involvement was a problem then Twoism wouldn't have been released either though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Surely if Chris H's involvement was a problem then Twoism wouldn't have been released either though.

they probably settled up with him financially. that's why he doesn't get credit anymore.

 

I was thinking, is it possible that one of the reasons for the decision to release something like only a selection of the early pre-twoism albums could be that Chris was a member at the time?

it's possible, but sample clearance is probably a bigger issue. there are a lot of unlicensed samples in those tracks, i bet.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest twiddler
it's possible, but sample clearance is probably a bigger issue. there are a lot of unlicensed samples in those tracks, i bet.

 

Yeah, I also think this may be the real problem. Hopefully, we will get a selection of the tracks without unlicensed samples... Though it would be better if they take the risk(like they have already done a few times) and release the albums as they are.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest 1884
Pylonesque is cool. But it aint no Boards of Canada.

 

Other Christ stuff has disappointed me.

 

I think Christ. has really fallen off since the debut EP on Benbecula. That EP was perfect and certainly rivaled BOC in quality on a couple of the tracks. The LP was definitely a step down, though a couple songs were really beautiful (the broken mix of Pylonesque and Sunart, in particular). Seeing & Doing was pretty forgettable. The "Vernor Vinge" track he just released is really good, but the rest of the 12" was forgettable. "Vernor Vinge" is supposed to be the only track off the new album though, so maybe Blue Shift Emissions will blow me away like Pylonesque did.

 

i bought pylonesque and mrm with an expectation that it would be more boc than it is, as im sure a lot of people have done. the 2 songs you mention (pylonesque broken remix and sunart) are the most boc similar songs on that album (always to play would be another one) and for me, instant favorites. the rest of mrm is very much a different sound and style than boc. eventually, the album grew on me and i now think the entire album is classic. personally, i like mrm as much as any other boc album except maxima. i love odds, evens and primates, ray breakout, lazy daisy meadow and especially eezeebreez which is my favorite of them all. pylonesque the album is fantastic too, again though, not as boc as id first expected.

 

if christ. had no connection to boc, there wouldnt always be this expectation for first time listerners - like my own experience. has anyone listened to christ not knowing about the boc connection? of course, the boc thing obviously helps with exposure. other than that, it may be a mixed blessing. who knows.

 

I agree with the consesnsus here. Pylonesque was really good; MMR was just okay. Seeing and Doing was crap.

 

 

my least favorite of the three but hardly crap imo. marsh of epidemics and magic piano are great. i like this ep a lot.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest endangered betche
has anyone listened to christ not knowing about the boc connection?

 

true dat

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest twiddler

Pylonesque is cool. But it aint no Boards of Canada.

 

Other Christ stuff has disappointed me.

that's generally how i feel.

 

it's hard even for the boards themselves to meet the expectations of their fans(see TCH EP), but 'but it aint no boards of canada' when talking about another artist is a bit too much. Sure it's not Boards of Canada, it's something different, which has things in common with boc, but at the same time it's very different.

 

His last EP sucks? What about Trans Canada Highway?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest twiddler
chris was initially hired on as the drummer, as far as i know. so much conflicting info out there, though.

 

as far as his tunes, i'm far more interested in picking up his work than boc's, overall. he puts more emphasis into melody and emotive quality, rather than texture and micro-tweaking. the layered detail is still there, but it's more of an additional peripheral, rather than focus.

 

to be honest, i listen to christ more than boc.

 

'blue shift emissions' out soon. hell yeah.

 

that's interesting, I didn't know he was hired as a drummer. can you remember where you read that, it must be an interesting source?

 

and yeah, especially lately, i also tend to listen to his stuff more than boc, esp. after their last EP - but we seem to be in the minority anyways(it's the boc forum after all)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

chris was initially hired on as the drummer, as far as i know. so much conflicting info out there, though.

 

as far as his tunes, i'm far more interested in picking up his work than boc's, overall. he puts more emphasis into melody and emotive quality, rather than texture and micro-tweaking. the layered detail is still there, but it's more of an additional peripheral, rather than focus.

 

to be honest, i listen to christ more than boc.

 

'blue shift emissions' out soon. hell yeah.

interesting.

 

the thing that sets boc apart in my mind is their attention to "texture and micro-tweaking" as you put it. nobody's tracks are as intricate as boc's. as far as melody goes, i think boc are capable of some of the most touching, emotive melodies in modern music. but i would agree that on TCH and TCH EP they seemed to focus on melody less.

 

also, boc are unbelievable at production. Christ's releases have suffered from some pretty swampy mixes. boc's tracks are labored over to the point of perfection.

 

boc set the standard, imo. hands down. for me, christ is a nice listen for tracks that are in the same vein as boc. but boc still set the benchmarks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest Archrival

When it comes to details and production BOC are in another leauge..but hey, Christ got some good ideas and some beautiful melodies indeed.. but, even Bolas mastering couldnt help MRM to "sound great", its a good album indeed, very nice ideas but I totally agree with lol alzado about the production, its a bit weak and the reverb is a bit overused and cheesy on some parts (the drums are strangely put in the mix)..you can always say "hey thats his sound" but I think the mix is very amateurish in some parts..but as you all know by now..I think BOC are in a class of their own when it comes to this kind of music. You can really hear how much time BOC puts into the production part...I mean the writing doesnt take that long, they said that the production part took 2/3 of the whole time making TCH and you can really hear that...only post production took several months...they are quite anal when it comes to making the albums sound "right", and thats what I like about BOC, that they are perfectionists when it comes to this. You can hear that they really worked a lot on "the sound" on TCH wich is my favourite BOC album so far.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest twiddler
When it comes to details and production BOC are in another leauge..but hey, Christ got some good ideas and some beautiful melodies indeed.. but, even Bolas mastering couldnt help MRM to "sound great", its a good album indeed, very nice ideas but I totally agree with lol alzado about the production, its a bit weak and the reverb is a bit overused and cheesy on some parts (the drums are strangely put in the mix)..you can always say "hey thats his sound" but I think the mix is very amateurish in some parts..but as you all know by now..I think BOC are in a class of their own when it comes to this kind of music. You can really hear how much time BOC puts into the production part...I mean the writing doesnt take that long, they said that the production part took 2/3 of the whole time making TCH and you can really hear that...only post production took several months...they are quite anal when it comes to making the albums sound "right", and thats what I like about BOC, that they are perfectionists when it comes to this. You can hear that they really worked a lot on "the sound" on TCH wich is my favourite BOC album so far.

 

I don't think Christ. spends less time on production really - boc's sound is largely based on simple techniques to get more real acoustics into the otherwise electronic textures. They record with mics sounds put through guitar amps, etc. - which is great, but it only involves multiple simple steps. They complicate the music by layering micro melodies and eventually the result is very detailed, but sometimes they go too much into detail without having a real good melody on top of that.

 

Their last two releases show this trend very well - some of the tracks are just texture play. I don't think this makes them superior in any way - yes, they have set standards, but I think they themselves find it harder and harder to meet them - which is their main problem. I loved MHTRTC not for the production(which sucks in professional terms at times) but for the musical content. they don't seem to rely on that too much now - but maybe that's what they will sound like in the future - excellent production, but not much underneath.

 

it's just a matter of taste after all

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.